National Geographic: Kangaroo Comeback

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The red kangaroo powerful, comical

engaging this is the desert

dwelling symbol of Australia

But kangaroos can be found almost

anywhere down under

They're up in trees

...on the forest floor

...and can even be found on the rocks

But all the kangaroos face danger

This is the story of a mother

and her Joey

and how he comes into his own

There is tenderness here

in the desert

and the harsh reality of survival

Persecuted by some, revered by others

the red kangaroo has astonishing

tales to tell

This is Australia, the driest

inhabited continent on earth

Sixty million years ago

this land began its final break

from the rest of the world

evolving along a path all its own

Today, its vast, open interior lies

naked in the sun

a land from another place in time

It's unforgiving here, not for

the faint of heart

and survival means marching to

a different beat

But this dry, hostile landscape

is not devoid of life

it's home to one of the most

astonishing creatures on earth

Kangaroos live in New Guinea

and Australia

yet their name is known far and wide

But while the world may know

a 'roo when it sees one

to science, they're still

something of a riddle

You might think nothing this big

is supposed to hop

But kangaroos do it with speed

and agility

Six-foot marvels of efficient

locomotion

they emerged from the rain forest

then spread over a continent

while adapting to desert heat

This is the story of the

red kangaroo

an amazing tale from the

land down under

It's summertime in the outback

And the 'roos can be found

where there is food

Most red kangaroos are red

in name only the females

and youngsters tend to be gray

The 'roos look like they're

congregating in groups

but it's food, not the company

that draws them together

For kangaroos

the most powerful social bond is

between a mother and her young

And like many of Australia's

astonishing mammals

joeys are raised in a pouch

They spend the first eight months

of their fascinating lives

living in a built-in nursery

This youngster needs a taste of

life outside the pouch

his mother's nearly bursting

at the seams

A wedgetailed eagle waits for his debut

but it's not here to wish

him good luck

Joey doesn't care who's in attendance

He's not in a hurry to come out

His mother has other ideas

She dumps him out in a tangled heap

For the first time

he sets foot in the world

But the place is not to his liking

The eagle watches his entrance

and exit

It's following the show

with keen eyes

A six-foot wingspan

and powerful talons

make the wedgetail

a dangerous observer

For young kangaroos that are

clumsy or careless

death can descend from the sky

Shade is precious in the desert heat

To cool themselves, kangaroos

lick their skin

where blood vessels run close

to the surface

Getting comfortable can be a bigger

problem especially

with a pouch full to the brim

A joey's world revolves around

its mother relationships

don't get much closer than this

The kangaroos languish

It'll be nightfall before there's

any relief from the heat

This old male decides to lay down

afternoon stakes

he's digging a hollow to rest

his giant hips

For the joey, a tail in the face is

worth the security of the pouch

He's safe from predators

and free to keep an eye on

the goings on

His mother's portable nursery

the hallmark of most marsupials

originated in the dinosaur age

One hundred million years ago

rain forest blanketed this land

Only small slivers of green

still remain

lush shrinking Edens clinging to

an island continent's edges

In places no more than 30 miles wide

these ancient rain forests

are endangered

But it was in places like these

that tiny marsupials first made

their Australian appearance

Exactly how they lived in this

isolated world

is a subject for debate

But there's no dispute that evidence

of marsupial origins

can still be found here today

The kangaroo's ancestors started

out in trees much

like this mountain brushtailed possum

which moves through the branches

on all fours

The first marsupials did raise

their young in a pouch

but a tree-bound existence made

them different in many ways

Kangaroo ancestors were probably

good climbers with long toes

sharp claws, and prehensile tails

They may have started out as

leaf-eaters

but leaves are low in nutrition

and difficult to digest

So perhaps Joey's ancestors ventured

out of the trees

in search of sweeter stuff

The dinosaurs were gone by then

but other

deadly reptiles remained

This carpet python is looking

for a meal

And possums have long been a favorite

The possum's keen hearing is no

match for such stealth

The possum escapes with little

more than a good scare

but next time, its luck may not hold

It was 15 million years ago

when the kangaroo's ancestors moved

down to the forest floor

Here beneath the canopy

shaded from heat

many animals are active all day

And in this rich, green, jungle store

there's something for everyone to eat

The musky rat-kangaroo is the smallest

and most primitive of Joey's

living relatives

Weighing in at only one pound

it's the only kangaroo

that doesn't hop

Rat kangaroos live mainly

on the ground

They don't use those tails

for climbing

but for gathering nest-building

materials

And those long, grasping toes are great

for handling a fruit and

insect based diet

Another ancient denizen of

the forest arrives

and the little rat kangaroo beats

a hasty retreat

The cassowary is an unusual animal

that has changed little in millions

of years

These large, flightless birds can

be over five feet tall

and it's the males that look after

the young

Shy birds, these giants shrink

from confrontation

unless there's a threat

to their young

Using their huge claws

cassowaries have been known to kill

humans in defense of their chicks

But this primeval world where

kangaroos evolved

has been disappearing from Australia

for millennia

And most kangaroos have long since

adapted to harsher stuff

Out in the bush, the days of high

summer have passed

The red kangaroos are more active

during the day

But our joey still spends most of

his time in the pouch

Older ones are venturing out to

enjoy the cooler weather

Red kangaroos are affectionate mothers

She grooms him every day

always keeping her eyes peeled

for danger

She knows he's still small enough

to lure unwanted attention

There is reason for her caution

The wedgetailed eagle is nearby

When the bird takes off

mothers fold their joeys back

into the pouch

With no prospects in the offing

the eagle returns to her nest to

see to her own family business

Her chicks are voracious eaters

They love kangaroo meat

But there's competition in the

predatory arena

Australia's wild dog, the dingo

also lurks wherever kangaroos gather

So the eagle must set out again

Wedgetails are partial to young joeys

but won't take on protective

mothers to get at them

Soon, he'll be as much of a handful

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